Shifting Device

ABSTRACT

The present invention aims to provide a shifting device with a simplified structure, which is easily reduced in size and insusceptible to temperature change. A shifting device  1  includes: a rotor member  80  pivotally-supported by a base member  30  in a turnable manner, and configured to turn following a shifting direction of a shift lever  10;  a lever member  90  pivotally-supported by the base member  30  in a turnable manner, and configured to turn following a selecting direction of the shift lever  10;  a hall sensor  71  as a detector member mounted on a circuit board  70  and facing against a detection target section of the rotor member  80;  and a hall sensor  72  mounted on a surface of the circuit board  70,  and facing against a detection target section of the lever member  90,  the surface being identical to a surface on which the hall sensor  71  is mounted.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a shifting device mounted on a vehiclein order to shift a shift position.

Conventionally, a shifting device that detects a shift position using asensor (see PTL 1) is configured such that hall ICs are provided on asingle circuit board, a shifting direction is detected by a rotationalposition of a magnet, and a selecting direction is detected by a changein a magnetic flux when a yoke moves in an axial direction with respectto the magnet. In this manner, as a mechanism in which directions fordetection are different between the shifting direction and the selectingdirection has conventionally been employed, a stroke of operationlargely varies depending on the direction and thus a structure of thedevice increases in size. Further, as a magnetoresistive element isused, detection of the shifting direction in a rotational direction issusceptible to temperature change.

Moreover, in a case of the shifting device employing a conventionalsensor, water or the like running down the shift lever may possiblyenter into the shifting device. As water or the like reaching the sensorbecomes a cause of failure or the like, it is desired to take measuresagainst water exposure for the shifting device employing a sensor.However, according to the technique of PTL 1 described above, as guidegrooves such as a shift gate and a select gate are opening upward,taking measures against water exposure has been difficult.

Furthermore, conventionally, while a mechanism of shift-locking when anengine is turned off (e.g., PTL 2) has been provided, the shift-lock isperformed using solenoid, and whether or not a state is in a shift-lockstate has not been detected. In addition, while there is known a deviceprovided with a function for, if it is detected that the shift lever isnot at a home position but in a manual position when an engine is turnedoff, retuning the shift lever to the home position, such a function isprovided separately from the shift-lock mechanism.

The following two patent literature documents are referred to herein:

PTL 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-62664

PTL 2: Japanese Patent No. 3996380

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a shifting device witha simplified structure, which is easily reduced in size andinsusceptible to temperature change.

Further, another object of the present invention is to provide ashifting device with a simplified structure, which is easily reduced insize, insusceptible to temperature change, and capable of preventing aforeign matter from entering.

Moreover, yet another object of the present invention is to provide ashifting device that is further reduced in size by integratingshift-lock of a shift mechanism and a mechanism for returning to amanual mode such that detection means for detecting whether or not astate is in a shift-lock state and detection means for detecting a shiftposition are provided on the same circuit board.

(1) One or more embodiments of the present invention provide a shiftingdevice including: an operable shift lever; a guide member having a guidegroove for guiding the shift lever to a plurality of operationalpositions; a circuit board having a detector member arranged thereon,the detector member being for detecting a swing direction of the shiftlever; abase member having a container section for holding the circuitboard; and a casing for accommodating the circuit board and the basemember, and further provided with: a first detection target memberpivotally-supported by the base member in a turnable manner, andconfigured to turn following swinging of the shift lever in a firstswing direction; and a second detection target memberpivotally-supported by the base member in a turnable manner, andconfigured to turn following swinging of the shift lever in a secondswing direction, wherein the detector member includes: a first detectormember mounted on the circuit board, and facing against a detectiontarget section of the first detection target member; and a seconddetector member mounted on a surface of the circuit board, and facingagainst a detection target section of the second detection targetmember, the surface being identical to a surface on which the firstdetector member is mounted.

(2) One or more embodiments according to the present invention providethe shifting device of (1) including: a ball section integrally providedfor one end section of the shift lever; and a concave section providedfor the base member, and holding the ball section in a swingable manner,wherein the first detection target member is configured by a rotormember pivotally-supported by the base member in a turnable manner, andholding the detection target section at one end section in a mannerrotatable in a plane vertical to a rotational axis of the first swingdirection, the second detection target member is configured by a levermember pivotally-supported by the base member in a turnable manner, andholding the detection target section at one end section of an armsection extending in a direction vertical to a rotational axis of thesecond swing direction, and engagement pieces are provided respectivelyat the other ends of the rotor member and the lever member, theengagement pieces being respectively engaged with engagement groovesprovided for the ball section and in a direction of an operational axisof the shift lever, the engagement pieces following movement of theshift lever in one of the first swing direction and the second swingdirection.

(3) One or more embodiments according to the present invention providethe shifting device of (2), wherein the detection target section of thefirst detection target member is a magnet provided for the rotor membersuch that both an N pole and an S pole of the magnet face against thefirst detector member, and the first detector member is a hall sensorfor detecting a rotational angle of the magnet when the rotor memberrotates according to the first swing direction of the shift lever in astate in which the magnet as the detection target section of the firstdetection target member faces against the first detector member.

(4) One or more embodiments according to the present invention providethe shifting device of (2), wherein the detection target section of thesecond detection target member is a magnet provided for the lever memberso as to be able to face against the second detector member, and thesecond detector member is a hall sensor for detecting whether or not themagnet is at a facing position when the lever member moves the magnet asthe detection target section of the second detection target membereither away from or closer to the second detector member according tothe second swing direction of the shift lever.

(5) One or more embodiments according to the present invention provideaccording to the shifting device of (3), wherein a convex sectioncorresponding to the concave section is provided on a side opposite ofthe concave section of the base member, the shift lever is disposedthrough a through hole opening in the convex section, the shiftingdevice is further provided with a guide cover fitting with the shiftlever and provided so as to cover the convex section, the guide coverbeing provided for preventing a foreign matter from entering the throughhole in the convex section from outside and for guiding the foreignmatter to a peripheral section of the convex section, and the basemember further includes: a wall section for preventing the foreignmatter guided by the guide cover from moving outside the base member;and a discharge section for discharging the foreign matter guided by theguide cover outside the base member.

(6) One or more embodiments according to the present invention provide ashifting device including: a shift lever configured to be operated froma neutral position to a plurality of operational positions; a guidemember having a guide groove for guiding the shift lever to theplurality of operational positions; a circuit board having a detectormember arranged thereon, the detector member being for detecting a swingdirection of the shift lever; and a shift lever restricting mechanismconfigured to restrict the shift lever, under a predetermined condition,from moving to a predetermined operational position, and furtherprovided with: a first detection target member configured to change aposition following swinging of the shift lever in a first swingdirection; a second detection target member configured to change aposition following swinging of the shift lever in a second swingdirection; a restricting member provided for the shift lever restrictingmechanism, and configured to change a position between ashift-restricting position and a released position; and a thirddetection target member configured to change a position following anoperation of the restricting member, wherein the detector memberincludes: a first detector member mounted on the circuit board, andfacing against a detection target section of the first detection targetmember; and a second detector member mounted on a surface of the circuitboard, and facing against a detection target section of the seconddetection target member, the surface being identical to a surface onwhich the first detector member is mounted, and further includes: athird detector member mounted on a surface of the circuit board, andfacing against a detection target section of the third detection targetmember, the surface being identical to the surface on which the firstdetector member is mounted.

(7) One or more embodiments according to the present invention providethe shifting device of (6) including: an actuator configured to drivethe shift lever restricting mechanism; a control section configured tocontrol the actuator ; and, a shift lever holding mechanism configuredto hold the shift lever in a manual operation position when the shiftlever is operated from the neutral position to the manual operation,wherein the restricting member includes a contact section configured tobe brought into contact with the shift lever and to release the shiftlever from a holding state by the shift lever holding mechanism, thecontact section being brought into contact with the shift lever byactuation of the actuator by the control section under a condition thata predetermined condition is satisfied when the shift lever is in themanual operation position, to change the position of the restrictingmember.

(8) One or more embodiments according to the present invention providethe shifting device of (7), wherein the restricting member includes anarc-like cam section provided rotatably about and integrally with arotational shaft parallel to the shift lever when the shift lever is inthe neutral position, the cam section being eccentric with respect tothe rotational shaft and having the contact section.

(9) One or more embodiments according to the present invention providethe shifting device of (8), wherein if the control section determinesthat a vehicle satisfies a predetermined shift-restriction conditionwhen the shift lever is in the manual operation position, the controlsection controls the actuator such that, by actuating the actuator todrive the restricting member to bring the cam section into contact withthe shift lever, the shift lever is released from the holding state bythe shift lever holding mechanism and the restricting member is held inthe shift-restricting position at which the shift lever is preventedfrom moving from the neutral position to the manual operation position.

According to the present invention, the shifting device maybe configuredto have a simplified structure, and be easily reduced in size andinsusceptible to temperature change.

Further, the shifting device according to the present invention may beconfigured to have a simplified structure, and be easily reduced insize, insusceptible to temperature change, and capable of preventing aforeign matter from entering.

Moreover, the shifting device according to the present invention may befurther reduced in size by integrating shift-lock of a shift mechanismand a mechanism for returning to a manual mode such that detection meansfor detecting whether or not a state is in a shift-lock state anddetection means for detecting a shift position are provided on the samecircuit board.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an upper view illustrating an embodiment of a shifting device1 according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the shifting device 1 taken along lineindicated by an arrow A-A in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the shifting device 1 taken along lineindicated by an arrow C-C in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the shifting device 1 taken along lineindicated by arrow D-D an in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the shifting device 1 taken along lineindicated by an arrow B-B in FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating apart of members constitutingthe shifting device 1.

FIG. 7 is an upper view illustrating a base member 30.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the base member 30 taken along lineindicated by an arrow E-E in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a view of the base member 30 seen along an arrow G in FIG. 7.

FIG. 10 is an upper view illustrating a casing 40.

FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the casing 40 taken along line indicatedby an arrow F-F in FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged sectional view illustrating of a portion of thecasing 40 near an elastic claw section 42 along with a ball section 11and the base member 30, before the ball section 11 and the base member30 are assembled.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged sectional view illustrating a portion of thecasing 40 near the elastic claw section 42 with the ball section 11 andthe base member 30 being assembled.

FIG. 14 is a chart showing an output waveform of a hall sensor 71 with alinear output.

FIG. 15 is a chart showing an output waveform of the hall sensor 71 witha non-linear output.

FIG. 16 is a chart showing an output waveform of a hall sensor 72.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a shiftingdevice 2 according to the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the shifting device 2 with a knob 214and a bezel 220 in FIG. 17 are removed.

FIG. 19 is an exploded perspective view of the shifting device 2.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the shifting device 2 seen from adifferent angle.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the shifting device 2 with the knob 214and the bezel 220 in FIG. 20 are removed.

FIG. 22 is an upper view of the shifting device 2 with the knob 214 isremoved.

FIG. 23 is a sectional view of the shifting device 2 taken along lineindicated by an arrow H-H in FIG. 22.

FIG. 24 is a sectional view of the shifting device 2 taken along lineindicated by an arrow I-I in FIG. 22.

FIG. 25 is a sectional view of the shifting device 2 taken along lineindicated by an arrow J-J in FIG. 22.

FIG. 26 is an upper view of the shifting device 2 with the bezel 220 inFIG. 22 is further removed.

FIG. 27 is a sectional view of the shifting device 2 taken along lineindicated by an arrow K-K in FIG. 26.

FIG. 28 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a shiftingdevice 3 according to the present invention.

FIG. 29 is a view illustrating the shifting device 3 with a bezel 320attached.

FIG. 30 is a perspective view illustrating a main part of the shiftingdevice 3.

FIG. 31 is a perspective view illustrating the main part of the shiftingdevice 3.

FIG. 32 is a perspective view illustrating the main part of the shiftingdevice 3.

FIG. 33 is a perspective view illustrating a restricting member 356.

FIG. 34 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which arestricting gear 357 is removed from the restricting member 356 shown inFIG. 33.

FIG. 35 is a side view of the main part of the shifting device 3 seenfrom a negative Y side.

FIG. 36 is a side view of the main part of the shifting device 3 seenfrom a positive X side.

FIG. 37 is a sectional view of the main part of the shifting device 3taken along line indicated by an arrow L-L in FIG. 36.

FIG. 38 is a sectional view of a shift lever holding mechanism takenalong line indicated by an arrow N-N in FIG. 36 in a state in which ashift lever 310 is in a home position.

FIG. 39 is a sectional view of the shift lever holding mechanism takenalong line indicated by the arrow N-N in FIG. 36 in a state in which theshift lever 310 is in a manual operation position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, best modes for carrying out the present invention will bedescribed with reference to the drawings.

First Embodiment

FIG. 1 is an upper view illustrating an embodiment of a shifting device1 according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, a part of componentsare shown transparent.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the shifting device 1 taken along lineindicated by an arrow A-A in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the shifting device 1 taken along lineindicated by an arrow C-C in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the shifting device 1 taken along lineindicated by an arrow D-D an in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the shifting device 1 taken along lineindicated by an arrow B-B in FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a part of the componentsconstituting the shifting device 1.

It should be noted that the drawings listed below including FIG. 1 toFIG. 6 are schematic illustration, and sizes and shapes of thecomponents are shown emphasized and not to scale as needed in order tofacilitate understanding.

Further, while reference is made to specific values, shapes, materials,and the like in the following description, these specifics may bealtered as needed.

Moreover, while an XYZ orthogonal coordinate system is provided in thedrawings listed below in order to facilitate illustration andunderstanding, this is not for indicating absolute coordinates, butmerely for showing common orientation in the drawings.

The shifting device 1 includes a shift lever 10, a guide member 20, abase member 30, a casing 40, a guide case 50, a guide cover 60, acircuit board 70, a rotor member 80, and a lever member 90, and ismounted on a vehicle to shift a shift position of the vehicle.

The shift lever 10 is a lever that can be operated by a driver, and heldby the base member 30 and the casing 40 in a manner swingable taking aball section 11 provided below (in a negative Z side) as a fulcrum. Adirection in which the shift lever 10 is allowed to swing is restrictedto a direction guided by a guide groove 21 provided for the guide member20 that will be described later. Specifically, the direction in whichthe shift lever 10 is allowed to swing is restricted to a selectingdirection in which an upper end (positive Z side end) of the shift lever10 moves in an X direction, and a shifting direction in which the upperend (positive Z side end) of the shift lever 10 moves in an Y direction.

The ball section 11 is integrated with the shift lever 10 by the shiftlever 10 being inserted therethrough, and has a substantial sphericalouter shape. The ball section 11 is provided with engagement grooves 11a and 11 b opening in a slit shape respectively on a negative X side anda positive Y side.

With the engagement groove 11 a, an engagement piece 81 that will belater described is slidably engaged. Further, with the engagement groove11 b, an engagement piece 91 that will be later described is slidablyengaged.

Moreover, to the ball section 11, a click member 12 is attached. Theclick member 12 is provided with a bias member and a small sphericalobject that are not shown, and the small spherical object disposed at atip end of the click member 12 is in contact with a click groove 51 ofthe guide case 50 in a biased manner. When the shift lever 10 isoperated, as the click member 12 moves to an adjacent click groove 51,it is possible to provide an appropriate sense of resistance (clickingfeeling) in operation, and thus to improve operational feeling. Further,an operational position of the shift lever 10 may be held by theengagement between the click member 12 and the click groove 51.

Other than an operating portion of the shift lever 10, the guide member20 is disposed on a surface closest to the driver, and the guide groove21 is opening therein. The guide member 20 is attached to the casing 40using a hook section 22 so as to sandwich the ball section 11, the guidecase 50, the guide cover 60, in a state in which the shift lever 10 isinserted through the guide groove 21.

The guide groove 21 guides the shift lever 10 to a plurality ofoperational positions. Specifically, the guide groove 21 guides so as torestrict a swing range of the shift lever 10 to shift positionsincluding R position (reverse), D position (drive), N position(neutral), center position (a position illustrated in FIG. 1), and Bposition (inertia brake). B position maybe L position (Low), M position(manual), or the like. As used herein, a swing direction in which thetip end of the shift lever 10 moves in the Y direction is referred to asa shifting direction (first swing direction), and a swing direction inwhich the tip end of the shift lever 10 moves in the X direction isreferred to as a selecting direction (second swing direction).

The base member 30 is provided on a side of a lower end (negative Zside) of the shifting device 1.

FIG. 7 is an upper view illustrating the base member 30.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the base member 30 taken along lineindicated by an arrow E-E in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a view of the base member 30 seen along an arrow G in FIG. 7.

The base member 30 includes, in its substantial center, a concavesection 31 in which the ball section 11 is held, and thus holds theshift lever 10 in a swingable manner. As illustrated in FIG. 8, theconcave section 31 opens upward (positive Z side) and rightward in FIG.8 (positive X side).

For a plane on a left side (negative X side) in FIG. 8 of the basemember 30, there is provided a container section 33 having a containeropening 32 opening sideward (negative X side). The container section 33holds and accommodates the circuit board 70. As the container opening 32opens to a direction opposite of the opening of the concave section 31,the concave section 31 and the container opening 32 may be provided by asingle base member 30. Further, with the casing 40 that will be laterdescribed, it is possible to easily provide a configuration in which theconcave section 31 and the container opening 32 are fully covered.

The base member 30 further includes a first pivotally-supporting section34 and a second pivotally-supporting section 35 pivotally-supporting,respectively, the rotor member 80 and the lever member 90 in a turnablemanner.

The first pivotally-supporting section 34 pivotally-supports a shaftsection 80 a of the rotor member 80 in a manner turnable followingswinging of the shift lever 10 in the shifting direction.

The second pivotally-supporting section 35 pivotally-supports a shaftsection 90 a of the lever member 90 in a manner turnable followingswinging of the shift lever 10 in the selecting direction.

As illustrated in FIG. 9 and FIG. 8, the first pivotally-supportingsection 34 and the second pivotally-supporting section 35 are providedin a shape in which cut-out openings 34 a and 35 a are connected, eachof the cut-out openings 34 a and 35 a is an opening defining a shape ofcircle with a portion convex peripherally outward. The rotor member 80and the lever member 90 are attached by positioning and insertingcorresponding retaining sections of the rotor member 80 and the levermember 90 respectively in the cut-out openings 34 a and 35 a.

The base member 30 further includes holding plates 36 inserted intothrough holes 43 that will be later described in the casing 40 aroundthe concave section 31.

The casing 40 is in a box shape opening downward (negative Z side) so asto accommodate, along with the circuit board 70, the base member 30 towhich the circuit board 70 is attached. The casing 40 also includes abox section opening upward (positive Z side), where the click member 12attached to the ball section 11 and a part of the guide case 50 areaccommodated.

FIG. 10 is an upper view illustrating the casing 40.

FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the casing 40 taken along line indicatedby an arrow F-F in FIG. 10.

The casing 40 includes a ball containing section 41 substantially in acylindrical shape larger than the ball section 11 at a position wherethe ball section 11 is accommodated. Along an inner circumference of theball containing section 41, elastic claw sections 42 and the throughholes 43 are provided.

Each of the elastic claw sections 42 includes a catching section 42 aengaged with the ball section 11 in an axial direction of the shiftlever 10 (Z direction). In this embodiment, the catching sections 42 aare provided at four positions.

Each of the through hole 43 is provided penetrating through in anup-down direction (Z direction) on a rear side of the correspondingelastic claw section 42, that is, on a side opposite of the side onwhich the catching section 42 a projects to accommodate the ball section11 e.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged sectional view illustrating of a portion of thecasing 40 near the elastic claw section 42 along with the ball section11 and the base member 30, before the ball section 11 and the basemember 30 are assembled.

In the state in which the base member 30 is not attached to the casing40, the elastic claw sections 42 provided for the casing 40 are allowedto elastically deform respectively toward the through holes 43 so thatthe ball section 11 maybe inserted through the catching sections 42 a inthe axial direction of the shift lever 10 (Z direction).

FIG. 13 is an enlarged sectional view illustrating a portion of thecasing 40 near the elastic claw section 42 with the ball section 11 andthe base member 30 being assembled.

In the casing 40, the ball section 11 is first inserted through thecatching sections 42 a in the axial direction of the shift lever 10 (Zdirection), and then the base member 30 is attached to the casing 40. Inthe state in which the base member 30 is attached to the casing 40, eachof the holding plates 36 is inserted into the corresponding through hole43 and positioned between the rear side of the corresponding elasticclaw section 42 and the ball containing section. In this state, theholding plates 36 inserted through the through holes 43 prevents elasticdeformation of the elastic claw sections 42 provided for the casing 40.Thus, the elastic claw sections 42 are not allowed to elastically deformin the state in which the catching sections 42 a are engaged with theball section 11. In this manner, the ball section 11 is reliably held bythe base member 30 and the casing 40 in the state in which the shiftlever 10 is allowed to swing.

The guide case 50 is provided between the ball section 11 and the guidemember 20. In a plane on a downward side (negative Z side) of the guidecase 50, click grooves 51 are provided at positions corresponding topositions of the click member 12 that moves according to the shiftposition of the shift lever 10. Further, a guide groove 52 similar tothe guide groove 21 of the guide member 20 opens in the guide case 50,and the shift lever 10 penetrates through the guide groove 52.

Similarly to the guide groove 21, the guide groove 52 also guides theshift lever 10 to the plurality of operational positions. It should benoted that the guide groove 52 guides the shift lever 10 by contact, andthe guide case 50 receives a load from the shift lever 10. Therefore,the guide case 50 is securely fixed to the casing 40 using a shaft 53.

The guide cover 60 is provided at a position between the guide member 20and the guide case 50 so as to be movable in an XY plane. In the guidecover 60, a round hole 61 that is substantially as large as the outershape of the shift lever 10 opens, and the shift lever 10 penetratesthrough the round hole 61. The guide cover 60 moves to cover the guidegroove 52 of the guide case 50 as the shift lever 10 swings, and thus toprovide a favorable external appearance as well as to prevent a foreignmatter from entering inside.

The circuit board 70 is positioned within the container section 33 ofthe base member 30 so that its board surface is parallel with an YZplane. The circuit board 70 is provided with hall sensors 71 and 72 as adetector member for detecting the swing direction of the shift lever 10,and the hall sensors 71 and 72 are disposed at positions at which thesensors are respectively allowed to face against a magnet 82 of therotor member 80 and a magnet 92 of the lever member 90.

The hall sensor (first detector member) 71 detects a rotational angle ofthe magnet 82 when the rotor member 80 rotates according to swinging ofthe shift lever 10 in the shifting direction in a state in which themagnet 82 faces against the hall sensor 71. As the hall sensor 71, ahall IC is used, capable of detecting a change in an angle of a magneticflux due to rotation of the magnet 82, and outputting, as a detectionsignal, a voltage corresponding to the detected angle of the magneticflux.

By the hall sensor 71 detecting the rotational angle of the magnet 82,it is possible to determine whether the shift lever 10 has moved to thepositive Y side or to the negative Y side in the shifting direction.

The hall sensors (second detector member) 72 detect whether or not themagnet 92 is at a facing position when the lever member 90 moves themagnet 92 either away from or closer to the hall sensors 72 according toswinging of the shift lever 10 in the selecting direction. As the hallsensors 72 only need to determine the presence of the magnet 92, a hallIC that only outputs ON or OFF.

By the hall sensors 72 detecting the position of the magnet 92, it ispossible to determine whether the shift lever 10 has moved to thepositive X side (either of R, N, and D) or to the negative X side(neutral position, which is the state shown in FIG. 1, or B position) inthe selecting direction.

Further, while the two hall sensors 72 are provided in this embodimentso that it is possible to perform detection even if there is a troublewith one of the sensors, only one hall sensor 72 may be provided.

The rotor member (first detection target member) 80 ispivotally-supported by the base member 30 in a turnable manner, andconfigured to turn following swinging of the shift lever 10 in theshifting direction. The rotor member 80 holds the magnet (detectiontarget section) 82 at one end section (end section on the negative Xside) in a manner rotatable in a plane vertical to the rotational axisof the shift lever 10 in the shifting direction (in an YZ plane). Themagnet 82 is provided for the rotor member 80 such that both of its Npole and S pole face against the hall sensor 71.

To the other end section of the rotor member 80 (end section on thepositive X side), the engagement piece 81 is fixed. The engagement piece81 is engaged with the engagement groove 11 a provided in a direction ofan operational axis of the shift lever 10, and rotates followingmovement of the shift lever 10 in the shifting direction.

The lever member (second detection target member) 90 ispivotally-supported by the base member 30 in a turnable manner, andconfigured to turn following swinging of the shift lever 10 in theselecting direction. The lever member 90 holds the magnet (detectiontarget section) 92 at one end section of an arm section 90 b (endsection on the negative X side) extending in a direction vertical to therotational axis of the selecting direction. In this embodiment, themagnet 92 is provided for the lever member 90 so as to face against thehall sensors 72 when the shift lever 10 is in the center position. Tothe other end section of the lever member 90 (end section on thepositive X side), the engagement piece 91 is fixed. The engagement piece91 is engaged with the engagement groove 11 b provided in the directionof the operational axis of the shift lever 10, and rotates followingmovement of the shift lever 10 in the selecting direction.

The magnet 92 of this embodiment is configured such that its N pole ison a tip end side (a side closer to the hall sensors 72), and a side ofthe N pole (tip end side) is configured thinner than a side of an S poleso as to facilitate determination of a polar direction. It should benoted that if the hall sensors 72 are for S pole, the S pole may be onthe tip end side of the magnet 92.

As described above, the rotor member 80 and the lever member 90 areconnected to the ball section 11 respectively via the engagement piece81 and the engagement piece 91, and therefore the rotor member 80 andthe lever member 90 are able to rotate independently from each otherwithout hindering the movement of the shift lever 10 in the shiftingdirection and the selecting direction.

FIG. 14 is a chart showing an output waveform of the hall sensor 71 witha linear output.

FIG. 15 is a chart showing an output waveform of the hall sensor 71 witha non-linear output.

As described above, a hall IC capable of detecting a rotational angle isused as the hall sensor 71, and the hall sensor 71 detects the change inthe angle of the magnetic flux due to the rotation of the magnet 82, andoutputs, as the detection signal, a voltage corresponding to thedetected angle of the magnetic flux. For example, it is possible to usea linear hall IC having a linear waveform (linear output) as shown inFIG. 14, or a hall IC having a non-linear waveform (non-linear output)as shown in FIG. 15. With the latter, it is possible to freely set anoutput of the hall IC without changing specification of an output-sidehigher ECU that is not shown. In this embodiment, the output waveform ofthe hall sensor 71 changes such that the output voltage changes linearlyin order of the R position, the N position or the center position, andthe D position or the B position, depending on the rotational position(rotational angle) of the rotor member 80. Thus, it is possible todetermine the swing position of the shift lever 10 in the shiftingdirection by monitoring the voltage output from the hall sensor 71.

FIG. 16 is a chart showing an output waveform of the hall sensors 72.

As described above, as the hall sensors 72 only need to determine thepresence of the magnet 92, analog halls IC are used as the hall sensors72. Further, the output waveform of the hall sensors 72 is shown low atthe B position and the center position, and high at the R position, theD position, and the N position, depending on the rotational position(rotational angle) of the lever member 90. Thus, it is possible todetermine the swing position of the shift lever 10 in the selectingdirection.

Based on the combination of the swing positions of the shift lever 10 inthe shifting direction and the selecting direction determined by theoutput waveforms of the hall sensor 71 and the hall sensors 72 describedabove, the operational position of the shift lever 10 may be specified.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the shifting devicemay be configured to have a simplified structure, and be easily reducedin size and insusceptible to temperature change.

Specifically, there are provided the hall sensor 71 and the hall sensors72 for converting the movement of the shift lever 10 both in theshifting direction and in the selecting direction into rotationalmovement both of the rotor member 80 and the lever member 90, and fordetecting the change in the due to rotation. With this, operationstrokes of the rotor member 80 and the lever member 90 may be achievedby a common driving mechanism, and thus the driving mechanism isintegrated into a compact size. Further, as the hall sensor 71 and thehall sensors 72 are arranged on the same surface of the circuit board70, the circuit board 70 may be used in common. Moreover, by providingthe base member 30 with a function for holding the shift lever 10 in aswingable manner and a function for holding the circuit board 70, a holdfunction may be integrated.

Furthermore, the other end sections of the rotor member 80 and the levermember 90 are respectively provided with the engagement pieces 81 and 91that are respectively engaged with the engagement grooves 11 a and 11 bprovided for the ball section 11 in the direction of the operationalaxis of the shift lever 10, and that follow movement of the shift lever10 in one of the shifting direction and the selecting direction. Withthis, the driving mechanism with which the rotor member 80 and the levermember 90 turn according to the swinging of the ball section 11 thatmakes the shift lever 10 swingable may be realized with a simplestructure. Further, by providing the base member 30 with a function forpivotally-supporting the rotor member 80 and the lever member 90, inaddition to the function for holding the shift lever 10 in a swingablemanner and the function for holding the circuit board 70, a structurefor holding the components may be integrated into the base member 30.Thus, it is possible to simplify an overall structure and reduce itssize.

Moreover, the detection target section of the rotor member 80 is themagnet 82 provided for the rotor member 80 such that both the N pole andthe S pole face against the hall sensor 71. The hall sensor 71 detectsthe rotational angle of the magnet 82 when the rotor member 80 rotatesaccording to swinging of the shift lever 10 in the shifting direction ina state in which the magnet 82 as the detection target section of therotor member 80 faces against the hall sensor 71. The shifting directionrequires detection of important positions such as R (reverse), D(drive), N (neutral), and B (inertia brake), and therefore it ispossible to provide a configuration with highly accurate detection byusing, as the hall sensor 71, a linear hall IC for detecting the changein the angle of the magnetic flux due to the rotation of the magnet 82.

Further, the detection target section of the lever member 90 is themagnet 92 provided for the lever member 90 so as to face against thehall sensors 72. The hall sensors 72 detects whether or not the magnet92 is at the facing position when the lever member 90 moves the magnet92 as the detection target section of the lever member 90 either awayfrom or closer to the hall sensors 72 according to swinging of the shiftlever 10 in the selecting direction. The detection in the selectingdirection is only between the neutral position and the select position,and the need for detection accuracy in this direction is less requiredcompared to the shifting direction. Therefore, a simple structurecapable of detecting the two positions may be employed.

Moreover, as a hall IC is used for either of the hall sensors 71 and 72,it is possible to provide a configuration that is insusceptible totemperature change, thus achieving a stable operation.

Second Embodiment

FIG. 17 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a shiftingdevice 2 according to the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the shifting device 2 with a knob 214and a bezel 220 in FIG. 17 are removed.

FIG. 19 is an exploded perspective view of the shifting device 2.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the shifting device 2 seen from adifferent angle.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the shifting device 2 with the knob 214and the bezel 220 in FIG. 20 are removed.

FIG. 22 is an upper view of the shifting device 2 with the knob 214 isremoved.

FIG. 23 is a sectional view of the shifting device 2 taken along lineindicated by an arrow H-H in FIG. 22.

FIG. 24 is a sectional view of the shifting device 2 taken along lineindicated by an arrow I-I in FIG. 22.

FIG. 25 is a sectional view of the shifting device 2 taken along lineindicated by an arrow J-J in FIG. 22.

FIG. 26 is an upper view of the shifting device 2 with the bezel 220 inFIG. 22 is further removed.

FIG. 27 is a sectional view of the shifting device 2 taken along lineindicated by an arrow K-K in FIG. 26.

The shifting device 2 includes a shift lever 210, the bezel 220, a basemember 230, a casing 240, a guide case 250, a holder 260, a circuitboard 270, a rotor member 280, and a lever member 290, and is mounted ona vehicle to shift a shift position of the vehicle.

Here, descriptions for components having the same functions as in thefirst embodiment described above shall be omitted if not necessary.

The shift lever 210 is a lever that can be operated by a driver, andheld by the base member 230 and the holder 260 in a manner swingabletaking a ball section 211 provided below (in a negative Z side) as afulcrum. A direction in which the shift lever 210 is allowed to swing isrestricted to a direction guided by a guide groove 252 provided for theguide case 250 that will be described later. Specifically, the directionin which the shift lever 210 is allowed to swing is restricted to theselecting direction in which an upper end (positive Z side end) of theshift lever 210 moves in the X direction, and the shifting direction inwhich the upper end (positive Z side end) of the shift lever 210 movesin the Y direction.

The ball section 211 is integrated with the shift lever 210 by the shiftlever 210 being inserted therethrough, and has a substantial sphericalouter shape. The ball section 211 is provided with engagement grooves211 a and 211 b opening in a slit shape respectively on the negative Xside and the positive Y side.

With the engagement groove 211 a, an engagement piece 281 that will belater described is slidably engaged. Further, with the engagement groove211 b, an engagement piece 291 that will be later described is slidablyengaged.

Moreover, to the ball section 211, a click member 212 is attached. Asillustrated in FIG. 23, the click member 212 is provided with a biasmember 212 a and a contact pin 212 b. The guide case 250 is providedwith click grooves 251 at positions corresponding to the swing positionsof the shift lever 210. The contact pin 212 b provided at a tip end ofthe click member 212 is in contact with the click grooves 251 in abiased manner. When the shift lever 210 is operated, as the click member212 moves to an adjacent one of the click grooves 251, it is possible toprovide an appropriate sense of resistance (clicking feeling) inoperation, and thus to improve operational feeling. Further, anoperational position of the shift lever 210 may be held by theengagement between the click member 212 and the click grooves 251.

The shift lever 210 also includes a guide cover 213 fitting with theshift lever 210 and provided so as to cover a convex section 236 of thebase member 230 that will be later described. The guide cover 213 isable to prevent a foreign matter from entering a through hole 237 in theconvex section 236 from outside, and to guide the foreign matter to aperipheral section of the convex section 236.

Other than an operating portion of the shift lever 210, the bezel 220 isdisposed on a surface closest to the driver, and a through hole 221through which the shift lever 210 is inserted is opening therein. Thebezel 220 is attached to the casing 240 using a hook section 222 in astate in which the shift lever 210 is inserted through the through hole221.

The base member 230 is contained in the casing 240, and includes, in itssubstantial center, a concave section 231 in which the ball section 211along with the holder 260 is held thus to hold the shift lever 210 in aswingable manner. As illustrated in FIG. 19, the concave section 231opens downward (negative Z side) and to a side opposite of the circuitboard 270 (positive X side).

For a plane on the negative X side of the base member 230, there isprovided a container section 233 a having a container opening 232opening to the negative X side. The container section 233 holds andaccommodates the circuit board 270. As the container opening 232 opensto a direction opposite of the opening of the concave section 231, theconcave section 231 and the container opening 232 maybe provided by asingle base member 230. Further, with the casing 240 that will be laterdescribed, it is possible to easily provide a configuration in which theconcave section 231 and the container opening 232 are fully covered.

The base member 230 further includes a first pivotally-supportingsection 234 and a second pivotally-supporting section 235 respectivelypivotally-supporting the rotor member 280 and the lever member 290 in aturnable manner.

The first pivotally-supporting section 234 pivotally-supports a shaftsection 280 a of the rotor member 280 in a manner turnable followingswinging of the shift lever 210 in the shifting direction.

The second pivotally-supporting section 235 pivotally-supports a shaftsection 290 a of the lever member 290 in a manner turnable followingswinging of the shift lever 210 in the selecting direction.

Similarly to the first embodiment, the first pivotally-supportingsection 234 and the second pivotally-supporting section 235 are providedin a shape in which cut-out openings are connected, each of the cut-outopenings is an opening defining a shape of circle with a portion convexperipherally outward. The rotor member 280 and the lever member 290 areattached by positioning and inserting corresponding retaining sectionsof the rotor member 280 and the lever member 290 respectively in thecut-out openings.

Further, the base member 230 is provided with the convex section 236corresponding to the concave section 231 on a side opposite of theconcave section 231. The through hole 237 opens in the convex section236, and the shift lever 210 is disposed through the through hole 237.The base member 230 is also provided with a wall section 238 and adischarge section 239.

The wall section 238 is provided in order to prevent the foreign matterguided by the guide cover 213 from moving outside the base member 230,and projects to the positive Z side so as to cover all around an uppersurface of the base member 230 (positive Z side surface).

The discharge section 239 is a discharge outlet for discharging foreignmatters provided in order to discharge the foreign matter guided to theupper surface of the base member 230 by the guide cover 213 outside thebase member 230. In this embodiment, the discharge section 239 opens soas to discharge the foreign matter downward. A discharge route furtheron is provided in a manner fully surrounded by the casing 240, and aforeign matter may not come closer to the circuit board 270 or the like.

In this embodiment, the guide cover 213 covers the opening (the throughhole 237) of the base member 230 to prevent foreign matters such aswater and dust from entering the base member 230, and the wall section238 and the discharge section 239 guide the foreign matters outside thebase member 230. Thus, it is possible to ensure prevention of foreignmatters from entering the shifting device 2.

The casing 240 includes a box section opening upward (positive Z side)so as to accommodate, along with the circuit board 270, the base member230 to which the circuit board 270 is attached. Further, casing 240 isin a box shape opening downward (negative Z side), where the guide case250 is attached.

In a plane on an upward side (positive Z side) of the guide case 250,the click grooves 251 are provided at the positions corresponding to thepositions of the click member 212 that moves according to the shiftposition of the shift lever 210. Further, the guide groove 252 opens inthe guide case 250, and the shift lever 210 is guided along the guidegroove 252 to the plurality of operational positions. It should be notedthat the guide groove 252 guides the shift lever 210 by contact, and theguide case 250 receives a load from the shift lever 210. Therefore, theguide case 250 is securely fixed to the casing 240 using a shaft 253 anda push nut 254.

The guide groove 252 guides the shift lever 210 to the plurality ofoperational positions. Specifically, similarly to the first embodiment,the guide groove 252 guides so as to restrict the swing range of theshift lever 210 to the shift positions including R position (reverse), Dposition (drive), N position (neutral), center position (the positionillustrated in FIG. 1, and B position (inertia brake). B position may beL position (Low), M position (manual), or the like. As used herein, aswing direction in which the tip end of the shift lever 210 moves in theY direction is referred to as a shifting direction (first swingdirection), and a swing direction in which the tip end of the shiftlever 210 moves in the X direction is referred to as a selectingdirection (second swing direction).

The holder 260 is disposed at a position between the base member 230 andthe casing 240, and together with the concave section 231 of the basemember 230, holds the ball section 211.

The circuit board 270 is positioned within the container section 233 ofthe base member 230 so that its board surface is parallel with the YZplane. The circuit board 270 is provided with hall sensors 271 and 272as a detector member for detecting the swing direction of the shiftlever 210, and the hall sensors 271 and 272 are disposed at positions atwhich the sensors are respectively allowed to face against a magnet 282of the rotor member 280 and a magnet 292 of the lever member 290.

The hall sensor (first detector member) 271 detects a rotational angleof the magnet 282 when the rotor member 280 rotates according toswinging of the shift lever 210 in the shifting direction in a state inwhich the magnet 282 faces against the hall sensor 271. As the hallsensor 271, a hall IC is used, capable of detecting a change in an angleof a magnetic flux due to rotation of the magnet 282, and outputting, asa detection signal, a voltage corresponding to the detected angle of themagnetic flux.

By the hall sensor 271 detecting the rotational angle of the magnet 282,it is possible to determine whether the shift lever 210 has moved to thepositive Y side or to the negative Y side in the shifting direction.

The hall sensors (second detector member) 272 detect whether or not themagnet 292 is at a facing position when the lever member 290 moves themagnet 292 either away from or closer to the hall sensors 272 accordingto swinging of the shift lever 210 in the selecting direction. As thehall sensors 272 only need to determine the presence of the magnet 292,a hall IC that only outputs ON or OFF.

By the hall sensors 272 detecting the position of the magnet 292, it ispossible to determine whether the shift lever 210 has moved to thepositive X side (either of R, N, and D) or to the negative X side(neutral position or B position) in the selecting direction.

Further, while the two hall sensors 272 are provided in this embodimentso that it is possible to perform detection even if there is a troublewith one of the sensors, only one hall sensor 272 may be provided.

The rotor member (first detection target member) 280 ispivotally-supported by the base member 230 in a turnable manner, andconfigured to turn following swinging of the shift lever 210 in theshifting direction. The rotor member 280 holds the magnet (detectiontarget section) 282 at one end section (end section on the negative Xside) in a manner rotatable in a plane vertical to the rotational axisof the shift lever 210 in the shifting direction (in the YZ plane). Themagnet 282 is provided for the rotor member 280 such that both of its Npole and S pole face against the hall sensor 271.

To the other end section of the rotor member 280 (end section on thepositive X side), the engagement piece 281 is fixed. The engagementpiece 281 is engaged with the engagement groove 211 a provided in thedirection of the operational axis of the shift lever 210, and rotatesfollowing movement of the shift lever 210 in the shifting direction.

The lever member (second detection target member) 290 ispivotally-supported by the base member 230 in a turnable manner, andconfigured to turn following swinging of the shift lever 210 in theselecting direction. The lever member 290 holds the magnet (detectiontarget section) 292 at one end section of an arm section 290 b (endsection on the negative X side) extending in a direction vertical to therotational axis of the selecting direction. In this embodiment, themagnet 292 is provided for the lever member 290 so as to face againstthe hall sensors 272 when the shift lever 210 is in the center position.To the other end section of the lever member 290 (end section on thepositive X side), the engagement piece 291 is fixed. The engagementpiece 291 is engaged with the engagement groove 211 b provided in thedirection of the operational axis of the shift lever 210, and rotatesfollowing movement of the shift lever 210 in the selecting direction.

The magnet 292 of this embodiment is configured such that its N pole ison a tip end side (a side closer to the hall sensors 272), and a side ofthe N pole (tip end side) is configured thinner than a side of an S poleso as to facilitate determination of a polar direction. It should benoted that if the hall sensors 272 are for S pole, the S pole may be onthe tip end side of the magnet 292.

As described above, the rotor member 280 and the lever member 290 areconnected to the ball section 211 respectively via the engagement piece281 and the engagement piece 291, and therefore the rotor member 280 andthe lever member 290 are able to rotate independently from each otherwithout hindering the movement of the shift lever 210 in the shiftingdirection and the selecting direction.

As described above, according to this embodiment, while basicallyemploying the same configuration as that in the first embodiment, theball section 211 is disposed at the position closer to the bezel 220 soas to minimize the opening on the upper side. Further, in thisembodiment, the guide cover 213 covers the opening (the through hole237) of the base member 230 to prevent foreign matters such as water anddust from entering the base member 230, and the wall section 238 and thedischarge section 239 guide the foreign matters outside the base member230. Thus, with the shifting device 2 according to this embodiment, inaddition to the effects similarly to the first embodiment, it ispossible to ensure prevention of foreign matters from entering theshifting device 2 and to improve reliability of the device.

Third Embodiment

FIG. 28 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a shiftingdevice 3 according to the present invention.

In FIG. 28, a bezel 320 is omitted and not shown.

Further, while an XYZ orthogonal coordinate system is provided in thedrawings listed below including FIG. 28 in order to facilitateillustration and understanding, this is not for indicating absolutecoordinates, but merely for showing common orientation in the drawings.

FIG. 29 is a view illustrating the shifting device 3 with a bezel 320attached.

FIG. 30 is a perspective view illustrating a main part of the shiftingdevice 3.

FIG. 31 is a perspective view illustrating the main part of the shiftingdevice 3.

FIG. 32 is a perspective view illustrating the main part of the shiftingdevice 3.

FIG. 33 is a perspective view illustrating a restricting member 356.

FIG. 34 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which arestricting gear 357 is removed from the restricting member 356 shown inFIG. 33.

FIG. 35 is a side view of the main part of the shifting device 3 seenfrom a negative Y side.

FIG. 36 is a side view of the main part of the shifting device 3 seenfrom a positive X side.

FIG. 37 is a sectional view of the main part of the shifting device 3taken along line indicated by an arrow L-L in FIG. 36.

FIG. 38 is a sectional view of a shift lever holding mechanism takenalong line indicated by an arrow N-N in FIG. 36 in a state in which ashift lever 310 is in a home position.

FIG. 39 is a sectional view of the shift lever holding mechanism takenalong line indicated by the arrow N-N in FIG. 36 in a state in which theshift lever 310 is in a manual operation position.

It should be noted that the drawings listed below are schematicillustration, and sizes and shapes of components are shown emphasizedand not to scale as needed in order to facilitate understanding.

Further, while reference is made to specific values, shapes, materials,and the like in the following description, these specifics may bealtered as needed.

The shifting device 3 includes the shift lever 310, the bezel 320, abase member 330, a casing 340, a shift lever restricting mechanism 350,a circuit board 370, a rotor member 380, and a lever member 390, and ismounted on a vehicle to shift a shift position of the vehicle.

Here, descriptions for components having the same functions as in thefirst embodiment and the second embodiment described above shall beomitted if not necessary.

The shift lever 310 is a lever that can be operated by a driver, andheld by the base member 330 and the casing 340 in a manner swingabletaking a ball section 311 provided below (in a negative Z side) as afulcrum. A direction in which the shift lever 310 is allowed to swing isrestricted to a direction guided by a guide groove 352 c provided for adetent member 352 that will be described later. Specifically, thedirection in which the shift lever 310 is allowed to swing is restrictedto the selecting direction in which an upper end (positive Z side end)of the shift lever 310 moves in the X direction, and the shiftingdirection in which the upper end (positive Z side end) of the shiftlever 310 moves in the Y direction.

The ball section 311 is integrated with the shift lever 310 by the shiftlever 310 being inserted therethrough, and has a substantial sphericalouter shape as a whole, although the outer shape includes holes forlightening. The ball section 311 is provided with engagement grooves 311a and 311 b opening in a slit shape respectively on the negative X sideand the positive Y side.

With the engagement groove 311 a, an engagement piece 381 that will belater described is slidably engaged. Further, with the engagement groove311 b, an engagement piece 391 that will be later described is slidablyengaged.

Moreover, to the ball section 311, a click member 312 constituting ashift lever holding mechanism is attached. As illustrated in FIG. 38 andFIG. 39, the click member 312 is provided with a bias member 312 a and acontact pin 312 b. The detent member 352 attached to a gear base member351 is provided with click grooves 352 a and 352 b at positionscorresponding to the swing positions of the shift lever 310. The contactpin 312 b provided at a tip end of the click member 312 is in contactwith the click grooves 352 a and 352 b in a biased manner. When theshift lever 310 is operated from the home position to the manualoperation position, the click member 312 moves from a position shown inFIG. 38 to a position shown in FIG. 39, and the contact pin 312 b alsomoves from the click groove 352 a to the click groove 352 b.Accordingly, it is possible to provide an appropriate sense ofresistance (clicking feeling) in operation, and thus to improveoperational feeling. Further, the operational position of the shiftlever 310 may be held by the engagement between the contact pin 312 band the click groove 352 a or 352 b, and thus functioning as a shiftlever holding mechanism.

Moreover, a part of the shift lever 310 extending down (negative Z side)below the ball section 311 is provided with a lever-side contact section311 c projecting to the negative X side. The lever-side contact section311 c is provided at a position at which the lever-side contact section311 c may be brought in contact with a contact section 356 b of a camsection 356 a that will be later described.

Other than an operating portion of the shift lever 310, the bezel 320 isdisposed on a surface closest to the driver, and a through hole 321through which the shift lever 310 is inserted is opening therein. Thebezel 320 is attached to the casing 340 in a state in which the shiftlever 310 is inserted through the through hole 321.

The base member 330 holds the ball section 311 in its substantialcenter, and thus holds the shift lever 310 in a swingable manner. Theportion that holds the ball section 311 is provided so as to open to thenegative Z side and the positive X side.

Further, the base member 330 includes a container section 333 forholding the circuit board 370. The container section 333 is provided fora negative X side surface of the base member 330 so as to open to thenegative X side. As the container section 333 opens to a directionopposite of the opening of the portion that holds the ball section 311,the portion that holds the ball section 311 and the container section333 may be provided by a single base member 330. Further, with thecasing 340 that will be later described, it is possible to easilyprovide a configuration in which the concave section 31 and thecontainer opening 32 are fully covered.

Further, the base member 330 pivotally-supports the rotor member 380 andthe lever member 390 in a turnable manner.

The casing 340 is in a box shape opening upward (positive Z side) so asto accommodate, along with the circuit board 370, the base member 330 towhich the circuit board 370 is attached. It should be noted that thestructure of the casing 340 may not be limited to a structure having anopening as in this embodiment, and may be altered appropriately.

The shift lever restricting mechanism 350 includes the gear base member351, the detent member 352, a worm 353, a transmission gear 354, a shaft355, the restricting member 356, a restricting gear 357, and a motor M.

The gear base member 351 is provided at a lower section (negative Zside) of the shifting device 3, and fixed to the base member 330. Thegear base member 351 is provided with a main part of the shift leverrestricting mechanism 350.

The detent member 352 is attached to the gear base member 351, andprovided with the click grooves 352 a and 352 b and the guide groove 352c. When the shift lever 310 is operated, the click grooves 352 a and 352b provide clicking feeling according to the relation with the clickmember 312 described above. The guide groove 352 c guides the shiftlever 310 to the plurality of operational positions. Specifically, asillustrated in FIG. 29, the guide groove 352 c guides so as to restrictthe swing range of the shift lever 310 to the shift positions includingR position (reverse), D position (drive), H position (home position,neutral position), M position (manual operation position), positiveposition (shift up), and negative position (shift down). As used herein,a swing direction in which the tip end of the shift lever 310 moves inthe Y direction is referred to as a shifting direction (first swingdirection), and a swing direction in which the tip end of the shiftlever 310 moves in the X direction is referred to as a selectingdirection (second swing direction).

The worm 353 is provided so as to rotate together with an output shaftof the motor M. The worm 353 meshes with a worm wheel 354 a of thetransmission gear 354.

The transmission gear 354 includes the worm wheel 354 a and a gearsection 354 b, and is provided rotatably centering a gear shaft 354 c.

As described above, the worm wheel 354 a meshes with the worm 353, andthe gear section 354 b meshes with the restricting gear 357.

The gear shaft 354 c extends in a direction parallel with a direction inwhich the shift lever 310 in the home position extends (direction of a Zaxis).

The shaft (rotational shaft) 355 extends in the same direction as thegear shaft 354 c, that is, parallelly with the direction in which theshift lever 310 in the home position extends (direction of the Z axis).The shaft 355 is provided with the restricting member 356 and therestricting gear 357 such that the restricting member 356 and therestricting gear 357 rotate together with the shaft 355. The shaft 355is constituted as a magnetic body, magnets 356 c and 356 d that will belater described are attached to the restricting gear 357 using a pullingforce due to a magnetic force to the shaft 355.

The restricting member 356 includes the cam section 356 a, the contactsection 356 b, and the magnets 356 c and 356 d, and rotates togetherwith the shaft 355 and the restricting gear 357.

The cam section 356 a is an arc-like cam, eccentric with respect to arotational center of the shaft 355. An arc-like surface of the camsection constitutes the contact section 356 b that is brought intocontact with the lever-side contact section 311 c of the shift lever310.

When the restricting member 356 rotates into the shift-restrictingposition, the contact section 356 b is brought into contact with of thelever-side contact section 311 c of the shift lever 310, and releases aholding state of the shift lever 310 by the shift lever holdingmechanism (the click member 312 and the detent member 352) to return theshift lever 310 to the H position. Further, when the restricting member356 is in the shift-restricting position, movement of the shift lever310 to the M position is restricted by the lever-side contact section311 c being brought into contact with the contact section 356 b.

After the cam section 356 a and the restricting gear 357 are attached tothe shaft 355, the magnets (detection target section) 356 c and 356 dare respectively inserted into two through holes opening in therestricting gear 357, and attached by the pulling force of the magnets356 c and 356 d to the shaft 355. The magnet 356 c and the magnet 356 dare attached such that their polarities exposed from the restrictinggear 357 are different from each other. As the magnets 356 c and 356 drotate and change their positions by following rotation of therestricting member 356, the rotational position of the restrictingmember 356 may be detected based on the magnetic polarity detected by ahall sensor 373 that will be described later.

The restricting gear (third detection target member) 357 is attached tothe shaft 355, and rotates together with the shaft 355 and the camsection 356 a. The restricting gear 357 meshes with the gear section 354b of the transmission gear 354. Accordingly, as the motor M rotates, therestricting gear 357 also rotates to rotate the restricting member 356.Further, as described above, the magnets (detection target section) 356c are 356 d are attached to the restricting gear 357.

A control section 358 refers to a result of the detection by the hallsensor 373, and commands a microcomputer that is not shown but mountedon the circuit board 370 to change the position of the restrictingmember 356 between the shift-restricting position and the releasedposition. The microcomputer controls the motor M.

The motor M is an actuator that constitutes a drive source for drivingthe shift lever restricting mechanism 350. As described above, drivingof the motor M is controlled by the control section 358 via themicrocomputer mounted on the circuit board 370.

Based on the above configuration, the shift lever restricting mechanism350 restricts movement of the shift lever 310 to the M position under apredetermined condition.

The circuit board 370 is positioned within the container section 333 ofthe base member 330 so that its board surface is parallel with the YZplane. The circuit board 370 is provided with hall sensors 371 and 372as a detector member for detecting the swing direction of the shiftlever 310, and the hall sensors 371 and 372 are disposed at positions atwhich the sensors are respectively allowed to face against a magnet 382of the rotor member 380 and a magnet 392 of 3 the lever member 390.

The hall sensor (first detector member) 371 detects a rotational angleof the magnet 382 when the rotor member 380 rotates according toswinging of the shift lever 310 in the shifting direction in a state inwhich the magnet 382 faces against the hall sensor 371. As the hallsensor 371, a hall IC, capable of detecting a change in an angle of amagnetic flux due to rotation of the magnet 382, and outputting, as adetection signal, a voltage corresponding to the detected angle of themagnetic flux, is used.

By the hall sensor 371 detecting the rotational angle of the magnet 382,it is possible to determine whether the shift lever 310 has moved to thepositive Y side or to the negative Y side in the shifting direction.

The hall sensor (second detector member) 372 is configured by two pairsof the hall sensors 372 a and 372 b. The hall sensor 372 detects amoving position of the magnet 392 by the lever member 390 moving themagnet 392 away from and closer to the two pairs of the hall sensors 372a and 372 b according to swinging of the shift lever 310 in theselecting direction. The hall sensor 372 a is positioned on the positiveZ side, and detects that the magnet 392 moves to the positive Zdirection as the shift lever 310 is operated to the positive X side (Mposition). On the other hand, the hall sensor 372 b is positioned on thenegative Z side, and detects that the magnet 392 moves to the negative Zdirection as the shift lever 310 is operated to the negative X side (Rposition or D position). When the shift lever 310 is in the H position,the shift lever 310 is positioned between the hall sensors 392 a and 392b, and is not detected by either sensor.

By the hall sensor 372 detecting the position of the magnet 392, it ispossible to determine whether the shift lever 310 has moved to thenegative X side (R position or D position) in the selecting direction,the H position, or the positive X side (M position).

Further, the circuit board 370 is provided with the hall sensor (thirddetector member) 373 on a surface of the circuit board 370 that is thesame as the surface on which the hall sensors 371 and 372 are mounted.The hall sensor 373 is disposed at a position at which the hall sensor373 is allowed to face against the magnets (detection target section)356 c and 356 d of the restricting gear (third detection target member)357.

The hall sensor (third detector member) 373 is configured by a hall ICthat is reactive to both N pole and S pole and configured to outputdifferent signals depending on the detected magnetic polarity, anddetects the rotational position of the restricting member 356.

The rotor member (first detection target member) 380 ispivotally-supported by the base member 330 in a turnable manner, andconfigured to turn following swinging of the shift lever 310 in theshifting direction. The rotor member 380 holds the magnet (detectiontarget section) 382 at one end section (end section on the negative Xside) in a manner rotatable in a plane vertical to the rotational axisof the shift lever 310 in the shifting direction (in the YZ plane). Themagnet 382 is provided for the rotor member 380 such that both of its Npole and S pole face against the hall sensor 371.

To the other end section of the rotor member 380 (end section on thepositive X side), the engagement piece 381 is fixed. The engagementpiece 381 is engaged with the engagement groove 311 a provided in thedirection of the operational axis of the shift lever 310, and rotatesfollowing movement of the shift lever 310 in the shifting direction.

The lever member (second detection target member) 390 ispivotally-supported by the base member 330 in a turnable manner, andconfigured to turn following swinging of the shift lever 310 in theselecting direction. The lever member 390 holds the magnet (detectiontarget section) 392 at one end section of an arm section 390 b (endsection on the negative X side) extending in a direction vertical to therotational axis of the selecting direction. In this embodiment, themagnet 392 is provided for the lever member 390 so as to face againstthe hall sensor 372 when the shift lever 310 is in the H position. Tothe other end section of the lever member 390 (end section on thepositive X side), the engagement piece 391 is fixed. The engagementpiece 391 is engaged with the engagement groove 311 b provided in thedirection of the operational axis of the shift lever 310, and rotatesfollowing movement of the shift lever 310 in the selecting direction.

As described above, the rotor member 380 and the lever member 390 areconnected to the ball section 311 respectively via the engagement piece381 and the engagement piece 391, and therefore the rotor member 380 andthe lever member 390 are able to rotate independently from each otherwithout hindering the movement of the shift lever 310 in the shiftingdirection and the selecting direction.

Here, an operation in the M position to which control by the controlsection 358 is related.

As the shift lever 310 moves from the H position to the M position, theshift lever 310 is held in the M position by the click member 312 andthe detent member 352 constituting the shift lever holding mechanism.

In this state, the shift lever 310 becomes operable in the shiftingdirection, and is shifted up when moved to the positive direction andshifted down when moved to the negative direction.

When the driver turns an engine off in the manual state, that is, whilethe shift lever 310 is in the M position, the hall sensor 372 detectsthe position of the magnet 392. If the shift lever 310 is determined toremain in the M position (manual operational position), the controlsection 358 actuates the motor M to rotate the restricting member 356.Then, as the contact section 356 b of the cam section 356 a is broughtinto contact with the lever-side contact section 311 c of the shiftlever 310, the shift lever 310 is pushed to the H position, and theshift lever 310 returns to the H position.

If the hall sensor 373 detects that the cam section 356 a reaches therestricting position, the control section 358 stops driving of the motorM, and stops the restricting member 356 at the position at which thecontact section 356 b faces against the lever-side contact section 311c.

With this, movement to the M position is restricted by the contactsection 356 b of the restricting member 356 unless the engine startsagain and the shift lever 310 is moved to the driving position (D) orthe reverse position (R).

When it is detected that the shift lever 310 has been moved to the Dposition (driving position) or to the R position (reverse position)after the engine starts, the control section 358 again actuates themotor M to move the contact section 356 b to a position at which thecontact section 356 b does not face against the lever-side contactsection 311 c. With this, the restriction of the movement of the shiftlever 310 to the M position is released, and the shift lever 310 isallowed to move to the M position.

As described above, according to the third embodiment, the rotationalcenter shaft (the shaft 355) of the restricting member 356 is disposedso as to be parallel to the shift lever 310 in the H position. Withthis, the hall sensor (third detector member) 373 for detecting theposition of the restricting member 356 and the hall sensor (firstdetector member) 371 and the hall sensor (second detector member) 372for detecting the swing direction of the shift lever 310 may be mountedon the same surface of the circuit board 370. Thus, with the shiftingdevice 3 according to this embodiment, in addition to the effectssimilarly to the first embodiment, it is possible to determine whetheror not the movement of the shift lever 310 is restricted, to cause theshift lever 310 automatically return to the H position, and to reduceits size even with the above further functions. cl Modified Example

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above,and it is possible to make various modifications and alterations, whichare also included within the scope of the present invention.

For example, in the second embodiment, the example in which thedischarge section 239 guides and discharges a foreign matter downwardand outside through the casing 240. The present invention is not limitedto such an example, and the discharge section may be configured so as todischarge a foreign matter outside the casing, and the discharge routefor discharging foreign matters may be altered as appropriate.

While the first embodiment to the third embodiment as well as themodified example maybe combined as appropriate, detailed description ofsuch combinations are omitted. Further, the present invention is notlimited to the embodiments described above.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   1: shifting device-   10: shift lever-   11: ball section-   11 a: engagement groove-   11 b: engagement groove-   12: click member-   20: guide member-   21: guide groove-   22: hook section-   30: base member-   31: concave section-   32: container opening-   33: container section-   34: first pivotally-supporting section-   34 a: cut-out opening-   35: second pivotally-supporting section-   35 a: cut-out opening-   36: holding plate-   40: casing-   41: ball containing section-   42: elastic claw section-   42 a: catching section-   43: through hole-   50: guide case-   51: click groove-   52: guide groove-   53: shaft-   60: guide cover-   61: round hole-   70: circuit board-   71: hall sensor-   72: hall sensor-   80: rotor member-   80 a: shaft section-   81: engagement piece-   82: magnet-   90: lever member-   90 a: shaft section-   90 b: arm section-   91: engagement piece-   92: magnet-   2: shifting device-   210: shift lever-   211: ball section-   211 a: engagement groove-   211 b: engagement groove-   212: click member-   212 a: bias member-   212 b: contact pin-   213: guide cover-   214: knob-   220: bezel-   221: through hole-   222: hook section-   230: base member-   231: concave section-   232: container opening-   233: container section-   234: first pivotally-supporting section-   235: second pivotally-supporting section-   236: convex section-   237: through hole-   238: wall section-   239: discharge section-   240: casing-   250: guide case-   251: click groove-   252: guide groove-   253: shaft-   254: push nut-   260: holder-   270: circuit board-   271: hall sensor-   272: hall sensor-   280: rotor member-   280 a: shaft section-   281: engagement piece-   282: magnet-   290: lever member-   290 a: shaft section-   290 b: arm section-   291: engagement piece-   292: magnet-   3: shifting device-   310: shift lever-   311: ball section-   311 a: engagement groove-   311 b: engagement groove-   311 c: lever-side contact section-   312: click member-   312 a: bias member-   312 b: contact pin-   320: bezel-   321: through hole-   330: base member-   333: container section-   340: casing-   350: shift lever restricting mechanism-   351: gear base member-   352: detent member-   352 a: click groove-   352 b: click groove-   352 c: guide groove-   353: worm-   354: transmission gear-   354 a: worm wheel-   354 b: gear section-   354 c: gear shaft-   355: shaft-   356: restricting member-   356 a: cam section-   356 b: contact section-   356 c: magnet-   356 d: magnet-   357: restricting gear-   358: control section-   370: circuit board-   371: hall sensor-   372 (372 a, 372 b): hall sensor-   373: hall sensor-   380: rotor member-   381: engagement piece-   382: magnet-   390: lever member-   390 b: arm section-   391: engagement piece-   392: magnet-   M: motor

What is claimed is:
 1. A shifting device comprising: an operable shift lever; a guide member having a guide groove for guiding the shift lever to a plurality of operational positions; a circuit board having a detector member arranged thereon, the detector member being for detecting a swing direction of the shift lever; a base member having a container section for holding the circuit board; and a casing for accommodating the circuit board and the base member, and further comprising: a first detection target member pivotally-supported by the base member in a turnable manner, and configured to turn following a first swing direction of the shift lever; and a second detection target member pivotally-supported by the base member in a turnable manner, and configured to turn following a second swing direction of the shift lever, wherein the detector member includes: a first detector member mounted on the circuit board, and facing against a detection target section of the first detection target member; and a second detector member mounted on a surface of the circuit board, and facing against a detection target section of the second detection target member, the surface being identical to a surface on which the first detector member is mounted.
 2. The shifting device according to claim 1, comprising: a ball section integrally provided for one end section of the shift lever; and a concave section provided for the base member, and holding the ball section in a swingable manner, wherein the first detection target member is configured by a rotor member pivotally-supported by the base member in a turnable manner, and holding the detection target section at one end section in a manner rotatable in a plane vertical to a rotational axis of the first swing direction, the second detection target member is configured by a lever member pivotally-supported by the base member in a turnable manner, and holding the detection target section at one end section of an arm section extending in a direction vertical to a rotational axis of the second swing direction, and engagement pieces are provided respectively at the other ends of the rotor member and the lever member, the engagement pieces being respectively engaged with engagement grooves provided for the ball section in a direction of an operational axis of the shift lever, the engagement pieces following movement of the shift lever in one of the first swing direction and the second swing direction.
 3. The shifting device according to claim 2, wherein the detection target section of the first detection target member is a magnet provided for the rotor member such that both an N pole and an S pole of the magnet face against the first detector member, and the first detector member is a hall sensor for detecting a rotational angle of the magnet when the rotor member rotates according to the first swing direction of the shift lever in a state in which the magnet as the detection target section of the first detection target member faces against the first detector member.
 4. The shifting device according to claim 2, wherein the detection target section of the second detection target member is a magnet provided for the lever member so as to face against the second detector member when the shift lever is in a neutral position, and the second detector member is a hall sensor for detecting whether or not the magnet is at a facing position when the lever member moves the magnet as the detection target section of the second detection target member either away from or closer to the second detector member according to the second swing direction of the shift lever.
 5. The shifting device according to claim 3, wherein the detection target section of the second detection target member is a magnet provided for the lever member so as to face against the second detector member when the shift lever is in a neutral position, and the second detector member is a hall sensor for detecting whether or not the magnet is at a facing position when the lever member moves the magnet as the detection target section of the second detection target member either away from or closer to the second detector member according to the second swing direction of the shift lever.
 6. The shifting device according to claim 2, wherein a convex section corresponding to the concave section is provided on a side opposite of the concave section of the base member, the shift lever is disposed through a through hole opening in the convex section, the shifting device further comprises a guide cover fitting with the shift lever and provided so as to cover the convex section, the guide cover being provided for preventing a foreign matter from entering the through hole in the convex section from outside and for guiding the foreign matter to a peripheral section of the convex section, and the base member further includes: a wall section for preventing the foreign matter guided by the guide cover from moving outside the base member; and a discharge section for discharging the foreign matter guided by the guide cover outside the base member.
 7. The shifting device according to claim 3, wherein a convex section corresponding to the concave section is provided on a side opposite of the concave section of the base member, the shift lever is disposed through a through hole opening in the convex section, the shifting device further comprises a guide cover fitting with the shift lever and provided so as to cover the convex section, the guide cover being provided for preventing a foreign matter from entering the through hole in the convex section from outside and for guiding the foreign matter to a peripheral section of the convex section, and the base member further includes: a wall section for preventing the foreign matter guided by the guide cover from moving outside the base member; and a discharge section for discharging the foreign matter guided by the guide cover outside the base member.
 8. The shifting device according to claim 4, wherein a convex section corresponding to the concave section is provided on a side opposite of the concave section of the base member, the shift lever is disposed through a through hole opening in the convex section, the shifting device further comprises a guide cover fitting with the shift lever and provided so as to cover the convex section, the guide cover being provided for preventing a foreign matter from entering the through hole in the convex section from outside and for guiding the foreign matter to a peripheral section of the convex section, and the base member further includes: a wall section for preventing the foreign matter guided by the guide cover from moving outside the base member; and a discharge section for discharging the foreign matter guided by the guide cover outside the base member.
 9. The shifting device according to claim 5, wherein a convex section corresponding to the concave section is provided on a side opposite of the concave section of the base member, the shift lever is disposed through a through hole opening in the convex section, the shifting device further comprises a guide cover fitting with the shift lever and provided so as to cover the convex section, the guide cover being provided for preventing a foreign matter from entering the through hole in the convex section from outside and for guiding the foreign matter to a peripheral section of the convex section, and the base member further includes: a wall section for preventing the foreign matter guided by the guide cover from moving outside the base member; and a discharge section for discharging the foreign matter guided by the guide cover outside the base member.
 10. A shifting device comprising: a shift lever configured to be operated from a neutral position to a plurality of operational positions; a guide member having a guide groove for guiding the shift lever to the plurality of operational positions; a circuit board having a detector member arranged thereon, the detector member being for detecting a swing direction of the shift lever; and a shift lever restricting mechanism configured to restrict the shift lever, under a predetermined condition, from moving to a predetermined operational position, and further comprising: a first detection target member configured to change a position following swinging of the shift lever in a first swing direction; a second detection target member configured to change a position following swinging of the shift lever in a second swing direction; a restricting member provided for the shift lever restricting mechanism, and configured to change a position between a shift-restricting position and a released position; and a third detection target member configured to change a position following an operation of the restricting member, wherein the detector member includes: a first detector member mounted on the circuit board, and facing against a detection target section of the first detection target member; and a second detector member mounted on a surface of the circuit board, and facing against a detection target section of the second detection target member, the surface being identical to a surface on which the first detector member is mounted, and further includes: a third detector member mounted on a surface of the circuit board, and facing against a detection target section of the third detection target member, the surface being identical to the surface on which the first detector member is mounted.
 11. The shifting device according to claim 10, comprising: an actuator configured to drive the shift lever restricting mechanism; a control section configured to control the actuator; and, a shift lever holding mechanism configured to hold the shift lever in a manual operation position when the shift lever is operated from the neutral position to the manual operation, wherein the restricting member includes a contact section configured to be brought into contact with the shift lever and to release the shift lever from a holding state by the shift lever holding mechanism, the contact section being brought into contact with the shift lever by actuation of the actuator by the control section under a condition that a predetermined condition is satisfied when the shift lever is in the manual operation position, to change the position of the restricting member.
 12. The shifting device according to claim 11, wherein the restricting member includes an arc-like cam section provided rotatably about and integrally with a rotational shaft parallel to the shift lever when the shift lever is in the neutral position, the cam section being eccentric with respect to the rotational shaft and having the contact section.
 13. The shifting device according to claim 12, wherein if the control section determines that a vehicle satisfies a predetermined shift-restriction condition when the shift lever is in the manual operation position, the control section controls the actuator such that, by actuating the actuator to drive the restricting member to bring the cam section into contact with the shift lever, the shift lever is released from the holding state by the shift lever holding mechanism and the restricting member is held in the shift-restricting position at which the shift lever is prevented from moving from the neutral position to the manual operation position. 